1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of material handling and more specifically relates to apparatus for transporting and dispensing I-beams.
2. The Prior Art
In Soviet Patent No. 935,413 of Odess Steel Rolling, there is shown an apparatus for dispensing empty pallets one at a time. A stack of empty pallets rests on a lifting table which moves in a vertical direction. Associated with the lifting table are dogs which in response to downward motion of the lifting table engage the next-to-bottom pallet in the stack, and thereby support the stack while the lifting table continues to move downwardly with the bottommost pallet resting on it. In this manner, the apparatus dispenses the bottom pallet from the stack. In contrast, the clip of the present invention does not require the use of a lifting table, and can be used for transporting the beams to the location at which they are to be dispensed.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,112,038, Breivik shows an apparatus for stacking I-beams, but the beams are stacked on their sides and are nested, which would not serve for those applications in which the present invention is used and in which the beams are to be installed in an upright orientation. Breivik's apparatus is not used for dispensing beams one at a time, but instead is used to form a stack by picking up beams.
Swedish Pat. No. 102,427 of Broman shows a device for dispensing logs one at a time. The apparatus is actuated by legs which are moved by contact with the ground or other surface.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,873,000, Eaton, et al. show an apparatus for dispensing sticks of lumber one at a time.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,976,320, Holladay, et al. show a device for lifting a stack of chicken coops. The apparatus includes manually-operated tines that engage the top of the lowest chicken coop in a stack.
Upon closer study of the above patents, it will be seen that all of them have a different structure and function in a different way from the present invention.